Obscure
by AquaTurquoise
Summary: Cedric and Sofia finally discover the final link that connects their nightmares, and together they must confront the one who's been tormenting them. But things aren't going to be easy for them, and they'll have to learn how to be strong together to overcome their biggest obstacle: the truth. *carried over from "Lavender Legend"*
1. Fade to Red

Obscure

Summary: Cedric and Sofia finally discover the final link that connects their nightmares, and together they must confront the one who's been tormenting them. But things aren't going to be easy for them, and they'll have to learn how to be strong together to overcome their biggest obstacle: the truth. *carried over from "Lavender Legend"*

Disclaimer: I do not own "Sofia the First."

A/N: Okay… Here's the final part in my "nightmare" chain, if you want to call it that. Lol. There is a set of stories that led up to this point: "Princess2Princess," "Shaken," "Shadow," and "Lavender Legend: Secrets of Avalor." This story _will_ make references to previous stories; I just wanted to mention that, so hopefully that clarifies a few things. :) There are two original characters in here, both seen in the end of "Lavender Legend." One is the "mysterious woman," whose name you'll learn here; the other is her assistant named "Payó," who is the one who does all the dirty work for her. ;) Hope you enjoy! Thanks to those who've stuck with me on this journey! PS—Due to the length of this story and because of my work schedule, I HAD to split it into chapters. :D

Chapter 1: Fade to Red

It's amazing how little attention some of the guards paid at night. One would think after the incident with Princess Ivy last fall, they'd be a bit more on guard. Then again, all it took was one brief moment of letting down their guards for someone to sneak by, virtually unseen…except by a few lightning bugs perhaps.

Sofia was asleep in her bed, her breathing evened out and her mind completely at ease for once. No dreams had come to her for the last few nights, but she wasn't necessarily upset about that. No dreams at all would be better than the incessant nightmarish dreams that had plagued her for far too long.

The princess's face contorted into one of discomfort as the shadowy figure from earlier placed a hand over her amulet, causing it to glow red instead of purple like it usually did. The girl mumbled something and appeared as though she were about to cry, and that's when the hand retracted and the figure disappeared.

Sofia sat up, gasping, and looked around. She could have sworn someone had just been with her. She looked down at her amulet and stared at it with wide eyes. Red. It was red. "Oh, no… Mr. Cedric!" Quicker than she'd ever managed, she fled her room to the sorcerer's tower.

Cedric had once again fallen asleep at his desk. The last few nights of working had taken their toll, and he'd not quite made it to his bed tonight. Wormwood had fallen asleep hours ago, and he'd not noticed Cedric's current sleeping position.

The same shadowy figure hovered over the sorcerer now, its hand brushing the pages of _Lavender Legend: Secrets of Avalor_. A few of the words that had not been visible several nights ago now reappeared.

The door slammed open. "Mr. Cedric!"

The figure vanished in a flash, but Sofia had seen it…whatever it was.

Cedric bolted up and winced as he knocked his head against the wall in his haste. He glanced toward the door in confusion and frowned. "Sofia, what are you-?" He blinked when she hurried over to him and hugged him. "What's going on?"

"Someone was in here…" She looked around cautiously, her blue eyes scanning every inch of the tower. "…I don't see anything though." She then looked back toward him worriedly. "Something is really wrong."

He blinked as she held up her amulet, which was glowing an ominous red color. "When did _that_ happen?"

"It was like this when I woke up. And I started having bad dreams again…but only for a few minutes." She sighed as her mentor observed the amulet curiously. "What are we going to do, Mr. Cedric?"

Cedric stood and took the girl's hand, leading her toward the door. "We're going to figure this out, I promise. But right now, you need some more rest. Neither of us can do anything if we're not fully alert."

"Oh, I'm pretty alert right now," she countered, shivering. "I don't like this at all, Mr. Cedric…" She glanced toward him. "Will you go with me back to my room? Please?"

He hesitantly nodded. "Very well." He shut the door behind them and descended the stairs with the princess.

Wormwood, meanwhile, never stirred from his sleep.

Sofia checked every inch of her room and behind every piece of furniture she owned before climbing into her bed. She stared down at her amulet in dismay, realizing it was still red. "What does this mean?"

"I don't know," Cedric admitted as he gathered her covers and drew them up for her. "Perhaps I…" No, he couldn't suggest that. She'd already hesitated quite a few times in the past when he'd requested to see the amulet to help her out…even if that hadn't been his original intent. Now when for once it _was_ , he couldn't bring himself to outright ask her.

However, Sofia seemed to latch onto his meaning and grasped the amulet, frowning. "Mr. Cedric, you've fixed my amulet before… Do you think you could…do it again?"

He needed to be truthful with her… "Um… To be perfectly honest, Sofia, I don't know… I mean, I could _try_ , but…I have no guarantee."

She unfastened the amulet and gazed at it, wishing she could figure out what was wrong with her precious gem. She looked up and took Cedric's gloved hand, dropping the amulet into his grasp. "If anyone can help me…you can."

' _Oh, don't do that_ ,' he thought with a sigh, realizing she was putting her trust in him _again_. Maybe it wasn't so bad… Maybe things would be okay. He held tight to the amulet and nodded toward her. "I'll see what I can do." He hesitated to leave now, especially with everything that had gone on that night. "Sofia…"

"Mr. Cedric, be careful." She smiled gently at him, trying to reassure him. "I'll be all right. And I'll see you in the morning."

"Don't you have school in the morning?" he corrected, frowning in confusion.

She shook her head. "The fairies and other staff members have meetings for the next few days, so we're supposed to stay home." She smiled wryly. "Lucky us, huh?"

He nodded, satisfied with her answer. "All right. Get some sleep, Princess." He left the room, shutting the door behind him as he headed toward his workshop again.

Sofia sighed and buried herself in the covers, attempting to urge herself to sleep and not worry about the amulet, the shadowy figure, and her mentor. It wasn't working, but she still managed to drift to sleep a few minutes later.

Cedric entered his workshop and closed his door before walking to his desk, sitting down, and dropping the amulet on it. He rested one elbow on the wooden surface and stared at the now-red jewel, his eyes scrutinizing the very being of it.

Wormwood yawned and opened his eyes before fluttering over to Cedric's shoulder. He gasped as he looked at the familiar piece of jewelry. "Is that what I think it is?!" He beamed. "You did it! You finally did it! …Wait, why is it red?" He gaped at Cedric. "You _didn't_."

Cedric waved a hand at his raven and frowned. "Not now, Wormy. Princess Sofia has asked me to guard her amulet and see what's wrong with it."

The bird made a sound of disapproval and groaned. "I should have _known_ you didn't successfully steal it. Maybe _I_ should be the leader of our little team from now on, hmm? …So, why _is_ it red?"

The sorcerer reached up and took the book he needed, opening it to the page with Sofia's amulet on it. He searched and searched but couldn't find anything on it changing colors, specifically red. He sighed. "I just don't know what to do…" He slammed the book shut and shoved it away. "Even if I were to keep the amulet in my possession, there's no way I could actually use it now. Plus, what about Sofia?"

"What about her? The dear little princess has had more than enough luck and blessings with it by now. She should share!" Wormwood grinned. "Right?"

"I can't let her down." Cedric stood and picked up the amulet again, watching as a disgruntled Wormwood set off and landed on his perch once more. "Oh, lighten up, Wormy. Believe it or not, this is bigger than trying to rule the kingdom and make a point. I'm afraid this is far more serious…and I don't want anyone getting hurt."

Wormwood hummed. "Especially Sofia."

"Especially Sofia."

The bird rolled his eyes. "I knew it." He yawned. "Well, I'm going back to sleep. Don't wake me up till you decide that you're actually going to use that stupid amulet for a useful reason." With that he went back to sleep.

Cedric considered leaving the amulet in his workshop, but Wormwood had seemed a bit on edge. It wasn't that he didn't trust his companion, but with it acting as strangely as it was, he figured it would be best to keep it in his possession at all times. But he had one rule: do _not_ wear it. He'd found that out the hard way last time…

He instead wrapped the amulet in a piece of white fabric, tied it off, and held it tightly as he finally managed to go to sleep.

"Excellent work, Payó," the mysterious blonde woman from earlier cooed as her servant entered into their undetermined location an hour later. She smiled at the brown-haired man, who bowed lowly.

"Lady Deyanira," he greeted solemnly as he stood upright. "I apologize it took so long. Finding that amulet wasn't easy. Locating the book wasn't either."

"Payó, what have I told you before?" She stepped down from her makeshift throne, an antique golden chair with rubies encrusted in the structure, and folded her arms. "You must learn to use your senses. Why do you think I gave you this ability? You'll be of no use to me if you cannot control those senses."

He nodded, feeling a bit foolish. "Yes, my lady. I understand." He looked into her glowing orb, which had in essence a split screen of both Cedric and Sofia sleeping. "May I ask…why these two?"

"Princess Ivy had the right idea but certainly the wrong execution. She became greedy and sloppy, and her blind jealousy and personal endeavors led her astray. Nettle, while a bit more of a chameleon in her efforts, will still let her frustrations be known. And Slickwell…" She rolled her eyes. "No threat whatsoever, and far more of an enemy of their steward. All of them have failed at least once. All of them will succumb to either the princess's charms or their own selfish acts." She gestured between herself and her servant. "This is where we differ, Payó. Sticking to the shadows as we've done, forming Shadow Cedric to mess with the sorcerer's mind, cursing the _Lavender Legend_ book and making the words vanish, invading their dreams and changing them into nightmares…these are far superior ways to weaken both the sorcerer and the princess and still get what we want."

Lady Deyanira raked her nails over the glass, smirking as she saw both subjects of her orb wince and cringe at the sound in their sleep. She stilled her hands. "And why these two, you ask? The book was merely a vessel, but it holds information about the amulet that will surely give both of them an insight which I don't want them to have, which is why they can no longer read the words, of course. The amulet is more of a goal: with its secret past and its numerous abilities… And the princess is the keeper of the amulet—the one who can truly unlock its full potential and its secrets. And while the sorcerer has tried numerous times and failed in his quest to harness the power of the amulet for himself, he's a bit more of a threat to us."

Payó blinked. "How so, my lady?"

"He has the princess's full confidence. She believes in him so much that it's sickening." She turned to her servant and rolled her eyes. "She ignores the truth right before her: that he's betrayed her many times or at least tried to. She wants so desperately to see the good in him, in her 'mentor' and 'best friend,' that she turns a blind eye to what he's fully capable of doing: charming her into entrusting him with her amulet." She pointed at the sleeping sorcerer and smirked. "And she's done it again. He now has the amulet. We only need to pry into his subconscious and… _encourage_ him to unleash those powers again, but the right way this time. Last time he was foolish and flippant. He'll be far more useful to us if we give him some guidelines."

"Is this where I come in, Lady Deyanira?"

She smiled with narrowed eyes, lifting her hand and tracing her red nails against his cheek. "Indeed, it is." With one snap of her fingers, Payó faded away and was replaced by a very familiar entity: Shadow Cedric. "Get to work."

"Ahh!" Sofia sat up, panting. She'd had her first nightmare in months, one to do with… She shook her head. She didn't want to think about it. She glanced down as Clover hopped up to her, obviously worried about her. "Clover…" She picked him up and held him, rocking him back and forth.

"What's wrong, Sofia?" he asked, blinking when she didn't respond. "Sofia?"

The princess placed her friend on the bed once again, smiling at him appreciatively. "Thanks for checking on me." She tilted her head as she saw him gesturing, and she sighed as she remembered an important detail. "Mr. Cedric took my amulet."

"WHAT?!" Clover growled. "I know that sorcerer was up to no good! Let me at him!"

She giggled at the bunny's over-exaggerated reaction, including his apparent imitation of kick boxing. She placed one hand on his head. "I _let_ him, Clover. Something was wrong with it, and he'd fixed it once before; he's going to see if he can fix it again."

"…Oh." Whoops. Clover grinned sheepishly at his overreaction. Then again, he'd noticed Wormwood being awfully suspicious many times, and it just made sense that his owner fit the bill too. Granted, Cedric had been far more tolerable the last year or two, but he still had his doubts sometimes. However, he couldn't bring himself to notify Sofia of this. She cared so much about her mentor and friend that it would break her heart for him to suggest something like that.

Still, the bunny knew he'd keep his eye on both the sorcerer and his raven.

"I'm going to go check on Mr. Cedric. Maybe he's fixed my amulet." She scratched her friend's ear gently, giggling as he made a purring sound of appreciation. "Silly Clover. I'll be back later." She threw on a robe and left the room.

Clover frowned. "Hmm. Wonder what's really going on…" He grinned as his stomach made a familiar gurgling sound. "I can wonder while I chow down though. Breakfast, here I come!" And with that, he hopped off.

Sofia entered the workshop quietly. She'd knocked a few times, but she never heard a response. She looked around, noticing that neither Cedric nor Wormwood seemed to be around. She heard a noise from the area where she knew his bedroom to be and moved quickly toward it, wrapping her fingers around the door handle.

The princess slowly opened the door, glancing around the dark room. She saw Cedric lying in his bed, his blankets scattered and something clasped in his hands. She approached him slowly, noticing his fitful sleep. ' _Another nightmare_ ,' she reasoned in her mind, ' _just like me_ …' She was frustrated now. What was going on? Why were _they_ being tortured like this?

"N-No, no!" Cedric cried as he sat up, looking around in a wild manner before his eyes settled on his surprised apprentice. "Sofia!"

"Mr. Cedric," she answered softly, walking toward him and watching him carefully. "It's okay. It's just me."

"He was here."

"Who?" She looked around, seeing no one. "Who was here, Mr. Cedric?"

He sighed and placed his head in his hands. "That horrid Shadow Cedric character… I felt him. I heard him. He's messing with my mind again." He growled and stood up quickly. "What do you _want_ with me?!" he yelled at no one in particular. "You want a piece of me? Do your worst!"

"Mr. Cedric!" Sofia grabbed his hands and pulled him out of his bedroom, back into the workshop. She pushed him into a chair and grabbed his face, making him look at her. "Mr. Cedric, calm down."

The sorcerer's brown eyes focused a bit more, locked onto his apprentice's concerned blue ones. "Sofia… I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault." She realized in his grasp he held a white piece of fabric with something inside it. "What's this?"

"Your amulet," he responded while glancing down. "Admittedly, I wasn't able to really figure out anything concerning its strange red color last night. I don't know what is going on with it."

"Oh." She nodded. That's what she was afraid of.

"I do have a suggestion though, and I'm afraid you're not going to like it." Seeing he had her attention, he sighed. "I don't think you should wear it until we know what's going on."

"B-But how am I supposed to…?" She trailed off. He didn't know about her powers she'd earned and harbored (or she thought he didn't), and she didn't exactly feel like explaining herself now. How could she explain its importance without giving away her secret? "My dad told me to never take it off."

Cedric frowned. "Yes, well, I'm quite certain your father would think differently if it meant the difference between life and death."

Sofia's eyes widened. "Are you saying that you think the amulet may try to…destroy me or something?"

"I'm _saying_ we don't know what's really wrong with it. Sofia, messing with magic is dangerous. We both know your amulet is far more powerful than either of us realizes, and the last thing I want is to see you getting hurt."

She realized his intent and nodded slowly. "So…what are we going to do with it then? And how am I supposed to explain to my dad…all of this?"

Cedric rolled his eyes, grabbing his wand and waving it around with a calmer smile. "Who said you have to?" He pointed the wand toward the girl, and soon a replica of her amulet appeared around her neck. "There. A perfect likeness. Now your father won't ask any questions." And he wouldn't admit that this particular amulet was the same replica he'd made for himself a while ago…

Sofia smiled, hugging him. "Thank you, Mr. Cedric."

He chuckled nervously, patting her on the back. "No problem, Sofia… Now then." He sat up straighter as she released him. "I need to get ready for the day, and I know you're probably hungry and need to eat with your family. What's say we reconvene in a few hours?"

She nodded. "Okay. So I'll meet you here in two hours." She waved and left the room.

Cedric sighed and slumped in his chair again, holding a hand to his head. He'd had a headache since he'd awoken, but he didn't really focus on it until now. Now that he realized it, he wasn't going to tell Sofia about this either. The less she had to worry about, the better.

To be continued…

A/N: Hope you like it so far. :) This story will be three chapters, so here are the titles for each one so that you can ponder what their meanings may be:

Chapter 1: Fade to Red

Chapter 2: Unveiled

Chapter 3: Dreamscapes

I'll try to update this weekend, but no promises. We'll see what happens! ~AquaTurquoise


	2. Unveiled

Obscure

Summary: Cedric and Sofia finally discover the final link that connects their nightmares, and together they must confront the one who's been tormenting them. But things aren't going to be easy for them, and they'll have to learn how to be strong together to overcome their biggest obstacle: the truth. *carried over from "Lavender Legend"*

Disclaimer: I do not own "Sofia the First."

A/N: Here's chapter two! Just so you know, there will be some more dramatic scenes in this one, plus as the chapter title suggests, there will be some unveilings in here as well. Just sit tight and enjoy.

Chapter 2: Unveiled

A few hours later when Sofia returned to the workshop, she blinked in surprise as she found that Cedric had a damp cloth draped over his forehead. He was leaning back in his chair with his legs propped up on the table for leverage. She almost wanted to giggle at the sight, but she was a bit concerned about the cloth… "Mr. Cedric?"

"Mummy?" he asked in panic as he floundered about, falling onto the floor and making a sound of discomfort. "Ow…"

The princess giggled and knelt next to her mentor, removing the cloth and setting it aside as she watched him carefully. "Are you all right?"

"Not really," he answered honestly as he shakily stood to his feet. He grabbed hold of the chair and righted it before grasping his table, leaning against it.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm afraid I have a bit of a headache." Well, there went his idea of giving her less to worry about. He straightened his robe before looking toward his apprentice. "Sorry to have worried you, Sofia."

She smiled and shook her head. "It's okay, Mr. Cedric. Um…" She placed her hands behind her back. "Are you still…up to doing our research on my amulet?"

He nodded before making a face. "…I probably shouldn't do that."

"Research?"

"Move my head," he clarified as he closed his eyes, attempting to will away the pain.

Sofia frowned. "Mr. Cedric, if you're not feeling well, maybe we should wait." She grabbed his hand and tugged him behind her.

"What _are_ you doing, Sofia?" He had opened his eyes amid the movement and seemed a bit disoriented by everything at the moment.

"Sending you to bed." She grinned as he groaned in dismay. "It's for your own good, Mr. Cedric." Once she'd gotten him into his room and motioned for him to lie in his bed—which he did—she then relayed her next idea. "I'll come check on you in a few hours. You need to get some rest. Believe me: a headache is nothing to take lightly." She took a blanket from a nearby chair and draped it over him.

Cedric sighed and smiled appreciatively. "You're acting like my mother," he informed her with a chuckle.

Sofia giggled. "Well, 'Mother' _does_ know best!" She smiled. "Get some rest, Mr. Cedric. I'll check on you later." She waved and left the room.

The sorcerer sighed heavily as he stared into the darkness of his room. His window had been blocked off due to the irritation of the sunlight (he really wasn't a morning person anyway), so it was nearly impossible to see any outlines or anything without at least some lamplight or a candle flickering.

Cedric yawned and settled in, slowly fading into the dream world.

In the workshop, Sofia's amulet glowed immensely for a few moments before dying down, the deep red color fading to purple once again.

"So what's going on with Cedric?" Amber asked Sofia as she watched her sister skitter about her room, tidying up things and putting various things away.

Sofia slowed a bit as she heard her sister's question. "What do you mean?" she asked, trying to sound oblivious. Oh, there was a _lot_ going on with her mentor… She just didn't want to worry anyone else.

The blonde frowned and folded her arms. "So it's like that, huh? Don't trust your own sister with whatever is going on?"

"No, it's not like that, Amber…" Sofia sighed and faced the other girl. "Mr. Cedric is just…tired. He's not feeling well…which is why I'm cleaning my room."

Amber blinked. "…You clean your room when you don't have magic lessons?" She then became a bit more concerned. "Sofia, you only clean like this when something is really bothering you. What's going on?"

"Nothing…" She dropped a pair of shoes into her closet and shut the door behind her.

The older princess walked toward Sofia, placing her hands on her shoulders. "You know you can tell me anything, right?"

"Sure, Amber," she began before thinking, ' _Except for the fact that I can talk to animals, my amulet is magical—though you knew that at one point, but that's another story—and can summon princesses, and that Mr. Cedric and I are being tormented by bad dreams, but sure! I can tell you anything…_ ' She sighed.

"Just…promise me you'll let me know if something bad is going on, okay?" Amber smiled encouragingly. "You're my sister, and I care about you."

Sofia finally returned her smile. "I know, Amber. Thank you."

After a while, Cedric sat up in bed, his headache subsided. He blinked a few times, attempting to see in the darkness. He noticed the sunlight under the crack of his door and walked over, pulling it open.

He glanced around the workshop and noticed that no one was in there. Wormwood must have gone out the window to search for food…or stretch his wings. He yawned and slowly shuffled into the workshop before pausing as the door creaked.

"Sofia?"

"Guess again."

Cedric was now fully awake as he gasped, facing a cloaked figure before him. "Who are you?"

The figure removed his hood, revealing Payó underneath. He smirked at the shorter sorcerer. "I'm Payó. And you? You're no one." He held up his hands, blasting Cedric with a shot of energy.

Cedric yelled and fell back into the cabinets, knocking himself unconscious.

Payó hummed in satisfaction before hearing the door creak behind him. Realizing he couldn't hide in time, he whirled to see the young girl he'd been looking for.

"Mr. Cedric?" she asked cautiously, seeing him lying on the floor. Her eyes widened when she saw the other man. "Who are you?"

"Again with the formalities…" He chuckled and lunged at the girl, growling when she ducked out of the way. "Get over here, you little brat!"

Sofia panted and rushed to her mentor's side, shaking him. "Mr. Cedric, wake up!" She gasped when she looked up, seeing a blast of light heading toward them. She quickly lowered her head, holding onto her friend in terror.

They disappeared.

Payó smirked, grabbed the amulet from Cedric's table, and vanished.

An hour or so later, Sofia and Cedric awoke and found themselves in a room. Cedric had come around after some time adjusting, and he'd assured his apprentice that he was fine, or would be. It also didn't take them very long to realize that his wand had apparently been taken. Or at the very least he couldn't find it.

The room was very minimal at worst, and not a prison cell at best. Neither was tied nor chained, for which they were grateful and relieved, but they still had no idea where they were. The window above the cot upon which they'd found themselves had a stream of weak sunlight illuminating a portion of the room.

Sofia could see a table near the door (locked, of course, as she had already checked), and on that table lay her actual amulet…or at least she _thought_ it was her amulet. The normal amethyst color had been restored, so she wasn't sure… There was also a curious section of the wall that didn't match the rest: it was brown while the rest of the room was beige.

Sofia picked up the amulet and examined it, finding that indeed it _was_ hers. "Mr. Cedric, look," she whispered, moving over to him quickly and holding the gem toward him. "It's my amulet!"

"How can you tell?" he asked curiously, blinking.

"I can feel it… I just know it's mine." She reached up and unclasped her temporary amulet, smiling and handing it to her friend. "Here. Thank you." She then put her own amulet on and sighed in relief as she felt a familiar wave of power emitting from it.

"Sofia, is it wise to wear your amulet right now after everything that's happened?" He held his hand out as she unlatched the fake necklace and offered it to him. He instead draped it over his own neck and hid it inside his robe. Seeing her confused glance, he sighed. "What I mean is… We've obviously been sorcerer-slash-princess-napped."

Sofia couldn't help the giggle that escaped her with his sarcasm.

"Your amulet was lying on my table before we ended up here. And now suddenly it's in the room with us? Doesn't that sound rather, I don't know, _suspicious_ to you?" He was clearly alert, more so than his companion at the moment, and he was highly concerned about their circumstances. Sofia, on the other hand, seemed a bit oblivious for a change.

"Mr. Cedric, do you think that means that tall man who was in your workshop brought it here?"

He frowned. "I'm not going to rule that idea out, but _why_ would he leave your amulet here? I mean, clearly he wanted it—truth be told, who wouldn't, if you were trying to do something…um, bad?" Digging his hole a bit deeper here—moving on. He stuttered as she watched him carefully, "I-I just mean that… We should be careful!" ' _Nice save, Cedric_.'

"I don't know what's going on anymore," the princess sighed as she put her head in her hands. She seemed so forlorn that Cedric was a bit worried. He'd _never_ seen her look this down before.

Deciding to cheer her up, Cedric offered a suggestion: "If you say this truly is your amulet, why don't we test it out?"

Sofia blinked, looking at him. "How?"

"Uh…" He pondered this for a moment before shrugging. "Well, how do you normally use it? I mean, it contains magical powers, after all… Can't you just…?" He clammed up quickly, realizing what he'd just said. She never mentioned the amulet's actual powers. He should in no way reveal his knowledge of its capabilities…

The girl froze. He sure sounded like he knew a bit more about the amulet than he'd let on. True, she knew that he knew the amulet held certain powers (he'd even been the first to tell her about the secret code of the amulet)…but she was sure he didn't know _all_ the details. Did he? Even if he was her mentor and friend, she felt that she shouldn't divulge too much information. She was _not_ going to get cursed again if she could help it. With that in mind, she dropped her suspicions for now. "I… Hang on a minute. Can you turn around, Mr. Cedric?"

The sorcerer lifted an eyebrow at her request. "Turn around?"

"Just trust me," she pleaded, seeing him sigh and roll his eyes, giving in.

"Fine. But make it quick." He turned his back to her as she grinned and held the amulet up to her lips.

"I wish to be small," she whispered, and the amulet granted her wish, making her rather tiny. She giggled in excitement before reversing the spell and quickly throwing her arms around a surprised Cedric. "It's the real amulet, all right!" she squealed happily, all previous concerns forgotten.

"Marvelous!" he returned while she giggled ecstatically and twirled around the room. "How is that going to help us get out of here?"

Sofia paused. "Um…" Oh, right. She didn't have a power to transport yet. That would have been _so_ useful too. If only Cedric hadn't had his wand taken… "I guess we're stuck here."

Cedric sighed. "Can this day get any better?"

The princess smiled and shook her head before walking toward the mismatched wall and leaning against it. She yelped when the brown section of the wall gave away, causing her to fall through it into a corridor.

"Sofia!" Cedric jumped up from the cot and rushed toward her, helping the girl up. He looked around and blinked. "Could it be? A…secret passageway?" He grinned, walking ahead of the princess.

"Where does it lead?" Sofia asked curiously as she followed him, shivering at the damp and cold atmosphere, illuminated only by torches on the wall.

"Who cares? If it's out of that room, then let's go!" He grabbed her hand, pulling her along.

"Mr. Cedric! Slow down!"

Meanwhile, a menacing set of icy blue eyes watched the two friends, a smirk set on her features. Lady Deyanira chuckled as they took off. "That's it, my darlings… Come right into my trap."

As they continued walking, Sofia felt as though she should ask Cedric about his statement earlier. It had circulated in her mind over and over, and she just had to wonder…what he really knew that he was keeping a secret from her. "Mr. Cedric, I have a question."

Cedric hummed thoughtfully as he looked back and forth. They'd come to a fork in the passageway, and he was trying to decide which path to take. "One moment, Sofia. I'm trying to figure out which was is the correct way to go."

She frowned, pulling her hand from his and folding her arms as he turned to face her. "What do you know about my amulet that you're not telling me?"

The sorcerer gulped at the expression on his young apprentice's face. She looked…not mad, but very serious. It was rather frightening. "I…"

"The _truth_ this time, Mr. Cedric," she insisted as he fidgeted with his fingerless gloves nervously.

"Ugh, oh, very well. You might as well know." He pulled her over to one side and had her sit against the wall with him, which she did. "You remember how you came to me a few years ago when you first arrived and asked me about the amulet? And I read you that passage from the spell book?"

"Yes," she responded, nodding. How could she forget?

"Well… Prior to your arrival, I actually knew more about the amulet than I let on. I…had actually studied it." Well, it wasn't a _total_ lie, but he wasn't about to get the girl angry. He'd seen her anger directed at someone else before, and it wasn't pretty.

"Why?"

Oh, yeah. Why would he study the amulet? He searched the depths of his mind for a reason. "Because." Perfect. She'd never question _that_ response.

Sofia blinked and then became a bit distraught with his short answers. "Because _why_ , Mr. Cedric?"

Cedric placed a hand to his head as he felt the headache returning, but this time it was more of a dull pulsation in his temple. "Because I—" He gasped when a shock coursed through him, shaking him to the core.

"Mr. Cedric!" Sofia jumped up and watched her mentor with wide eyes. "What's wrong?"

The shock ceased, and the sorcerer quickly scrambled to his feet. "We—We mustn't stay here." He grabbed her hand and quickly led her down the left tunnel.

Apparently neither of them saw the sign tacked to the beginning of the wall that read, "Danger Ahead."

"Lady Deyanira, why do you allow them to roam freely about your castle?" Payó asked in concern as he stood behind the blonde woman, who watched the two friends in her orb once more. "Shouldn't we just capture them already? I mean, I even practically _gave_ the amulet to the princess, and—"

"Payó." Lady Deyanira turned from her orb and glared at her servant. "Have I ever indicated that I needed _your_ input on anything?" She smirked as he lowered his head. "I thought not. I know what I'm doing. As you've seen, with my own magic, I can control them from a distance if I so desire, as I just did. You need to learn to be a bit more patient, not to mention useful. Now, why don't you be a good servant and bring our little captives to me?" She grinned and thrust a wave of magic at the brown-haired man, transforming him into a red-scaled dragon with eyes of fire.

Sofia breathed deeply from her place next to Cedric. They had stopped. They _had_ to stop. Before them was a large gap in the floor, and on the other side of it was a door. There was no way they'd make it across without magic!

Magic. That's it!

Sofia glanced toward Cedric, who seemed dismayed by the fact that there was a large gaping hole in the ground. She took his hand, garnering his attention. She smiled, previous conversations forgotten for now. "Do you trust me, Mr. Cedric?"

He blinked. What a strange question… "I…" He nodded uncertainly. "Yes."

She held one hand over her amulet, her mind made up. "I'm going to show you something that you can't tell anyone else about. It's our secret, okay?"

Cedric became slightly nervous. "What are you talking about, Princess?"

She smiled and held his hand tighter. " _We_ wish to be small!"

Within seconds, both sorcerer and princess were only a few inches tall. Sofia was used to it by now, but Cedric…

"Ahh!" the sorcerer yelled. "We're tiny! Why are we so tiny?! And how is _this_ going to help us get across the _large hole in the floor_ , Sofia?!"

"Mr. Cedric!" She grabbed his hands, calming him down. "Trust me. This is one of the powers my amulet…granted me."

He tilted his head. Oh, right. He'd figured that one out already, but how had she gotten this particular power? "I… I see." He glanced to his left at the large hole and immediately scooted backwards. "And how, do tell, are we going to use this magnificent power of yours to get over that?"

"Easy! Look." She pointed toward the wall, which seemed to have a crevice carved at the bottom of it. "We can use that part of the wall like a bridge. But we're going to have to be very careful."

"Really? What was your first clue?" He yelped when she grabbed his hand and dragged him along.

They approached the wall tentatively, careful not to look down. Clinging to the wall for protection, the friends slowly edged their way to the other side. Slide. Stop. Slide. Check to make sure the other was okay. Slide. A bit more…

Soon enough, they arrived to the other side unscathed. Sofia hurried toward the door, Cedric right behind her. She grabbed his arm and held onto her amulet, wishing to be big again. Both of them transformed into their normal sizes. She grinned up at him. "Comes in handy, doesn't it?"

"Indeed," he muttered, rubbing his head after he'd knocked it against the wall during his transition. "How long have you had _that_ power?"

She shrugged. "Not…long." She didn't really feel like going into details. She was scared she'd lose her powers if she exposed their existence to others. She wasn't exactly sure how the 'rules' worked in that case. But this had been an emergency, and she sincerely hoped if her amulet decided to react, she'd have more of a blessing than a curse.

Cedric nodded, sensing her hesitancy. Maybe he'd learn more about this whole escapade later. "Right then. Let's go." He grabbed the door knob and shoved it open.

The next room was rather ominous. There were lakes of lava everywhere. Smoke rose from the depths of the hot liquid, and the smell of sulfur attacked their senses.

"Ugh," Sofia complained, holding her hands to her mouth and nose. "What is that?"

"Torture," Cedric replied, half seriously and half sarcastically. Truthfully, he didn't want to stick around long enough to find out if he was right. "Let's go." He led this time, the girl following him closely.

"HALT!"

Both friends looked up as a large red dragon appeared out of nowhere before them. It was Payó in his altered form.

"M-Mr. Cedric," Sofia whimpered, latching onto his arm. This wasn't like the nice dragons she'd encountered before. Oh, no. There was something far scarier about this one…

Payó cackled and reached out, picking up both Enchancian inhabitants before he disappeared from the room with them.

Lady Deyanira glanced up as she saw a spark of magic and electricity flicker, producing not only her servant but the banes of her existence as well. She smirked. "Well, well, well. I see you made it out of your holding room."

"Who are you?" Cedric demanded as the dragon roughly dropped them onto the marble floor. He glared at the beast, which transformed back into Payó. He blinked. What in the world was going on?

"I'm Lady Deyanira. Welcome to my kingdom." She raked one hand through the air, her nails scraping against the very fabric of reality and making Cedric and Sofia feel dizzy all of a sudden. "I must say, it's been quite entertaining watching you two these past several months. Been having strange nightmares, seeing things vanish when they were there before…or something?"

Sofia gasped. "You! You are the one behind all of this?!" She frowned. " _You_ are the one who cursed my amulet, sent Shadow Cedric after Mr. Cedric, and invaded our dreams!"

She chuckled. "My, what a clever little princess." She floated down from her place in the air and lifted the girl's chin, her sharp red nails digging into Sofia's skin a bit. "Now I see why you're so revered, and why the amulet has been so loyal to you these last few years."

Cedric pushed Sofia behind him, breaking the contact the woman had with his apprentice. "Keep your hands off her, you…you fiend!"

The blonde woman pouted insincerely. "Now, Cedric, that really hurts." She smirked, holding up her hand with an orb of energy glowing in her palms. "You'd really talk that way to a fellow sorcerer—or shall I say, sorceress?"

Sofia gasped. "She's a sorceress?"

" _The_ top of my class, I might add." She chuckled and whirled around, smacking Cedric in the face with her hair and making him sputter and grumble. "Oh, I knew every spell, every curse, every potion to make for just about anything… But they wouldn't let me expand my horizons. So I wanted to conquer a few kingdoms and eventually galaxies… Where's the harm in that?" She grinned as she faced them again. "So I harnessed my knowledge and my abilities, and I cultivated them over the last several hundred years."

Cedric smirked. "You _are_ looking a bit old now—I see a few wrinkles forming at the base of your forehead." He yelped before ducking as the blonde sorceress hurled another magic attack at him. "Temper, temper!"

She scowled. "This is no game, sorcerer! Now. You two will do as _I_ say from now on. Failure to comply will result in…" She smiled wickedly as she glanced toward the young princess. "…dire consequences…"

Sofia hid behind Cedric, clinging to his robe.

"Why us?" he asked, trying to understand. "Why Sofia?"

"Why you? Well, let's see. You know all about the Amulet of Avalor, of course. You know what it's capable of doing. You know it can unleash a wave of magic and mystery." She glanced at Sofia, who seemed a bit surprised by this revelation. "And young Sofia here, of course, because _she_ is the owner… She can _control_ it, even if she doesn't realize it yet." She grinned and held out her hand to the girl. "So hand it over."

Sofia frowned at the demand. "No!"

Cedric searched his robe frantically, trying to find anything to help them. His eyes widened when he fished out something rather familiar. "…Oh, _here's_ my wand!"

The princess gaped at him in disbelief. "You just _now_ realized you had that?!"

"It was in my other secret pocket," he answered sheepishly as he clutched the wand securely. He pushed her behind him. "Run, Sofia!" He set forth a blast from his wand, but instead of hitting Lady Deyanira, it hit the ceiling, causing a huge crack. "Oh, for Merlin's sake!"

Sofia, for once, didn't hesitate. She took off running.

"Going somewhere?" Lady Deyanira challenged as she held her hand out, a blast of energy narrowly missing the young princess as she screamed and ducked.

"Sofia, look out!" Cedric yelled worriedly as he attempted to aim his wand at the more powerful woman.

Sofia ignored him and continued running haphazardly, ducking each time a blast of energy or powers zoomed toward her. She smiled triumphantly as she evaded several blasts at once by moving behind a pillar. She glanced upward and noticed the newly formed cracks in the ceiling. "We're making a mess," she mumbled to herself thoughtfully. When she sensed that the attacks had stopped, she peaked out from behind the pillar and sighed in relief. Lady Deyanira was nowhere in sight.

She stepped out, smiled over toward Cedric, and gave him a nod of encouragement. "We did it, Mr. Cedric! She's gone!"

He returned her smile nervously before gasping with wide eyes. "Sofia, behind you!"

"Huh?" She turned and barely had time to register what was happening as Lady Deyanira grabbed the amulet around her neck. "Please, stop!"

"And why should I?" the blonde woman cooed menacingly, allowing her powers to course through the amulet, changing it from its normal purple to a sickening, bloody red once more. "You just don't know when to listen, Princess Sofia. Allow me to demonstrate."

While her magic invaded the amulet, her free hand released an attack on Sofia herself, causing her to double over in pain. The magic became ruthless, slicing wounds in her skin and loosening the intricately-sewn pearls from her dress.

Cedric scowled and aimed very carefully, though shakily, as he muttered a key word in possibly the darkest tone he'd ever mustered: " _Perdere._ "

Lady Deyanira seemed to hear him and released her hold on the girl's amulet, also ceasing her magic attack, and screamed in frustration as the attack soared toward her. She pulled Sofia in front of her, using her as a shield.

Cedric watched in horror as his magic struck Sofia's amulet, shattering it. "Oh, no…" He watched helplessly as the girl's eyes closed, her body collapsing to a heap on the floor. He glared at Lady Deyanira. "You… You monster!"

She smirked. "And now you're starting to see, sorcerer…there's no stopping me."

"She's an innocent child!"

"And _I_ …am _not_." She sneered at him and cackled. "Welcome to the _real_ nightmare, Cedric!" With that, she vanished.

Great, _now_ where had she gone? He sighed heavily and shook his head before clenching his fists in outright rage as he realized he was going to have to try to track her down _again_. And now with the amulet destroyed— The amulet… Sofia!

"Sofia, please, wake up," Cedric began shakily as he lowered to the marble floor and gently patted the girl's pale face. His own face slowly began draining of color. "…Sofia?"

Sofia lay still and quiet, her dress somewhat tattered with several pearls now missing. Around her neck lay the remnants of her once beautiful and precious amulet. She was so still that it looked as though…

"She's not breathing," the sorcerer whispered to himself in disbelief as he gasped and gathered the unresponsive girl into his arms.

" _Perdere_ ," he'd declared, intending to _destroy_ Lady Deyanira…and the spell had instead unwittingly been directed at…

"Sofia!" He was inconsolable as his body shook with sobs, the princess cradled in his hold. "What have I done?"

To be continued…


	3. Dreamscapes

Obscure

Summary: Cedric and Sofia finally discover the final link that connects their nightmares, and together they must confront the one who's been tormenting them. But things aren't going to be easy for them, and they'll have to learn how to be strong together to overcome their biggest obstacle: the truth. *carried over from "Lavender Legend"*

Disclaimer: I do not own "Sofia the First."

A/N: Hi, guys! It's been a while, and I'm sorry I've been sort of missing. I started my final two grad classes (yay!) and work has been hectic. But here's the final chapter of "Obscure." I hope you like it. It's been a long time coming, this ending of the "nightmare" series. Enjoy!

A/N 2: By the way, some of you were asking me about my stories in relation to this particular subject becoming "AU-ish," and I'm doing my best to be as consistent as I can. Clearly, this type of situation more than likely _won't_ happen in the show, but I'm trying to keep it as close to a timeline as I can. Yes, I'll mention a few certain events/pieces of information that will be in relation to the show itself, so don't worry. Even if this particular section of my stories, the "nightmare series," is stand-alone, I'm okay with that. :) The rest of my stories—the individual ones—will tend to go along with the show more or less. Thanks for your concerns and ideas. ;)

Chapter 3: Dreamscapes

Previously…

"Sofia, please, wake up," Cedric began shakily as he lowered to the marble floor and gently patted the girl's pale face. His own face slowly began draining of color. "…Sofia?"

Sofia lay still and quiet, her dress somewhat tattered with several pearls now missing. Around her neck lay the remnants of her once beautiful and precious amulet. She was so still that it looked as though…

"She's not breathing," the sorcerer whispered to himself in disbelief as he gasped and gathered the unresponsive girl into his arms.

" _Perdere_ ," he'd declared, intending to _destroy_ Lady Deyanira…and the spell had instead unwittingly been directed at…

"Sofia!" He was inconsolable as his body shook with sobs, the princess cradled in his hold. "What have I done?"

Five minutes. Five aching, agonizing minutes had gone by. Cedric stared at his apprentice, her pale skin growing colder and her eyes still closed. Oh, he'd give anything to see those blue eyes alight with life again… But he'd just…

He held the girl closer to him and exhaled in a shuddering manner. He gave up. How could he possibly win now with his best friend gone? He didn't care anymore. If it weren't for her, he never would have tried to be better in the first place; now with her… _gone_ , what else was there to believe in?

"I wish I could undo this spell," he whispered, talking either to himself or to the lifeless girl in his arms—he wasn't sure. "I wish…"

"That _was_ a pretty powerful spell, Cedric."

Cedric turned around, his breath caught in his throat as the voice had startled him. His eyes widened. "M-Merlin?" ' _What is he doing here?_ _ **How**_ _did he get here_?' He wasn't sure…

The older wizard smiled in return and knelt next to the two friends. "Well, I'd say this is a rather dire situation."

The younger sorcerer frowned. "I'm in no mood for joking, as you can clearly tell."

"I'm not joking, Cedric. I'm being perfectly serious." He wielded his own wand, the end lit already. "I believe I can help you both."

"Y-You can?"

"Cedric, your magic is powerful enough to destroy," Merlin explained as he lowered his wand to the girl's amulet, unleashing a stream of magic and allowing it to flow gently, spilling into every crevice of the shattered gem. "However, you also have the power to heal." His eyes lifted to stare meaningfully at the Royal Sorcerer. "Have you forgotten that?"

"Merlin, I used the ' _Perdere_ ' spell! I can't undo that. I-I can't…" He closed his eyes, fighting back another wave of overwhelming emotion.

" _Perdere_?" Merlin blinked at the word and sighed, a relieved smile on his face. "Cedric, that isn't the ultimate destruction spell. And it didn't truly harm Sofia."

Cedric's brown eyes opened again, widening at the older man's admission. "I-It's not? Then what did _my_ spell do? And if it didn't harm her, then why isn't she responding to me?"

"Well, from what I can tell, her amulet had previously been tampered with." He lifted his wand as the amulet was restored to its former glory, beautifully purple and reflective. A glittering of its own magic even poured out of it before backing away to a slight glimmer and glow. "I believe it is back to normal now. And as for Sofia, she's simply had the wind knocked out of her. She is unconscious, but I see no reason for her not to make a full recovery."

Cedric frowned. "But that _sorceress_ , as she calls herself, used her as a shield, and I hit Sofia instead of her!"

"No, Cedric, you hit her _amulet_. Sofia wasn't harmed. Not by you, anyway…" Merlin smiled gently as the girl suddenly gasped for a breath of air, coughing and attempting to sit up. He carefully slid the princess over to the sorcerer, easing her into his arms. "Take care of her, Cedric. And if next time you need to use a spell so powerful, a couple of things: one, make sure your aim is correct, and two, the proper spell is ' _Interficio_.'" With a simple nod, he vanished.

Sofia opened her eyes as she stirred, her vision a bit blurry. "M-Mr. Cedric?" she asked, confused as to her whereabouts.

Cedric sighed in relief. He never thought he'd be so happy to hear his name spoken by her before… "Sofia," he laughed, hugging her and surprising her.

"Oh!" She slowly began to smile as she felt her mentor holding her much tighter and more firmly than he ever had before. "I… What's going on?"

He released her and sighed. "I'm afraid Lady Deyanira got away… She, um…" Should he tell her what had happened? He figured they had enough secrets between them, and this one in particular she needed to know. "Sofia, she used you as a shield when I used a spell to destroy her…after she'd attacked you. I thought you were…"

Sofia frowned, realizing what had actually happened. "Where did she go?"

"I don't know." He stood, pulling the girl to her feet. "But at this rate, I say we just go back to Enchancia before we have another run-in with her and get ourselves destroyed. Come on." He held his hand out to her, waiting for her response.

The girl looked at his hand before shaking her head. "No, Mr. Cedric."

He blinked.

"If we run away, she wins. And she'll keep winning. Your nightmares will come back, my amulet will start trying to turn against me, and we'll never escape her. We have to face our fears head on and deal with them."

Cedric lowered his hand, sighing. "I don't know if I can, Sofia…"

She smiled encouragingly, taking his previously offered hand. "Mr. Cedric, don't give up on me. I've never given up on you, and I never will."

He studied her for a few moments before returning her smile, his hand squeezing hers gently and affirmatively. "Anything for you, Sofia." He held up his wand in his free hand, murmuring something and restoring her dress to normal, the pearls in their proper place and the rips resewn. The wounds in her skin also healed, no evidence of the attack left.

Sofia beamed at his actions and giggled. "Thanks, Mr. Cedric."

"Lady Deyanira," Payó began uncertainly as he approached her in their new realm. Evidently, she'd fancied it important enough to pull him along for the ride.

"What is it, Payó?" she snapped, ceasing her actions with filing her claw-like nails. "Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Y-Yes, my lady, but I thought you might want to know that…the princess is unharmed, and so is her amulet."

The blonde woman glowered at him, and she snapped the nail file in two. "What?"

"I—I saw everything through that crystal ball of yours, and somehow the princess is alive, and the two of them seem to be determined to find you."

The sorceress growled under her breath before ceasing, a wicked smile forming on her lips. " _Let_ them come, Payó. In fact…" She waved her hand, wrapping magic around her assistant and turning him into a dragon once more. "I will leave you to it. Bring them to me."

"Do you know where we're going?" Cedric asked tiredly as he continued following the princess.

She shook her head. "Everything looks the same now…" She sighed, stopping and leaning against a wall as Cedric leaned against the opposite one. "You'd think she would have left some kind of sign or something."

The sorcerer couldn't help rolling his head. "She's a wayward sorceress, Princess Sofia—not a riddle-writer. I don't expect her to offer us any sort of clues or hints as to her whereabouts."

The girl frowned and reached up to her amulet, sliding it against the chain. She blinked when she saw it shimmer a little bit. "Hmm." She glanced up at her mentor, only to see him massaging his forehead. "Mr. Cedric, you don't _know_ this sorceress by any chance, do you?"

Cedric lowered his hand and blinked at the girl's question. "What?"

"Well, I mean, you went to school with lots of sorcerers and sorceresses, right? She wasn't one of your classmates or anything, was she?"

The sorcerer raised an eyebrow at her query. "Sofia, she said she'd been planning this for hundreds of years. I'm not _that_ old."

She grinned a little, making her friend give her a pointed look. "Just curious." She gasped when a _thud_ landed next to her and shook the ground they were standing on. "M-Mr. Cedric!"

Payó, in his dragon form, growled and reached out, aiming to capture the friends once more.

Cedric stepped in front of the girl, shielding her with one arm while using his other hand to hold up his wand. " _Desino_!" He watched as the red dragon ceased his actions, effectively frozen. He grabbed Sofia's hand, pulling her along. "He won't be like that for long. We must keep going."

Their shoes clacked against the marble floor, a sickening echo to remind them of their current whereabouts. Every corridor looked the same. Every door held some unknown destination. It was like a labyrinth: impossible.

"Mr. Cedric, can't we just transport out of here?" Sofia finally asked, squeezing his hand to get his attention through his muttering about locations.

"Don't you think I tried that?" he sighed. "It doesn't work. That wretched woman is far too strong in her magic for us to do that."

"There's got to be _some_ way out of here…" She reached for her amulet once more as they paused at yet another door. "Maybe my amulet can do…something." Secretly she wished for a princess to come whisk them out of the castle. Maybe Jasmine could come with her magic carpet?

Cedric folded his arms, distressed by the predicament. "If only it could…"

Sofia frowned. He was acting rather distant all of a sudden. It was as if he had simply given up and reserved himself to the fact that they _were_ indeed trapped with little hope of escaping. She took her friend's hand and sighed. "Mr. Cedric, are you mad at me?"

The sorcerer's ears perked at this question, and he watched her in surprise. "What?"

The young girl released his hand and clasped her own together. "I know sometimes I may do the wrong thing or get us into trouble, and I should expect you to continue saving me or helping me… And I can take it if you're annoyed with my dreams and my problems… But I don't like it when you're mad."

Cedric paused before smiling gently, kneeling to his apprentice's level. "Sofia, I am not mad at you. Yes, I'm a bit frustrated with the entire situation, but none of this is your fault." He had to remind himself that he'd nearly lost her today. Not long ago, he'd held her…near lifeless body in his arms. He shook his head to rid his mind of that mental image. That's the last thing he needed to focus on now.

The princess lunged forward, hugging her friend fervently.

The sorcerer sighed and returned her embrace, sheltering her from their current surroundings and just taking in the sincerity and incredibly _real_ moment.

"How touching…"

The friends parted quickly when they heard a familiar and wholly unwelcome voice.

Lady Deyanira appeared with a ragged-looking Payó in dragon form by her side. He looked as if he'd been attacked…and Cedric and Sofia wouldn't put it past the sorceress to have done such a thing. "Still alive, I see."

"No thanks to you." Cedric glared up at her as he pushed Sofia behind him.

"Now Cedric, that hurts." She smirked, holding out one hand with a glowing orb of energy. "Look, I'm not a violent person."

Now _that_ was the biggest lie the two friends had ever heard.

"But even my patience can only be stretched so far. So here's what we're going to do." She flexed her hand the energy expanding and glowing brighter. "The princess is going to hand over the amulet. You two are going to be transferred back to the beginning of your story, minus the amulet, and we're all going to go on about our lives in a merry manner."

Sofia frowned, holding her amulet securely. "Why do you want my amulet anyway?"

"I need something to match my Wassailia costume," Lady Deyanira quipped sarcastically. "Why do you _think_ , little princess? I'm tired of asking!" She threw the blast of energy at the two friends, missing as they dodged out of the way. "Be still!"

Cedric grabbed Sofia by the shoulders and looked at her seriously. "Sofia, I need you to run. Don't look back. Don't worry about me. Just run."

She gasped, shaking her head. "No, I won't!" She shrieked as another blast of energy soared at them. "Mr. Cedric! What are we going to do?"

Neither had time to think as Payó suddenly gained a wave of strength and rushed forward, grabbing the princess and slamming her rather hard against a pillar.

Sofia knocked her head against the hard surface and fell to the marble floor, passed out.

"Sofia!" Cedric clutched his wand defensively, aiming it at Payó. "You'll pay for that." He glared intently at the red dragon. " _Interficio_."

Payó yelled as he suddenly was wrapped in a gleam of light, literally torn apart into oblivion.

Lady Deyanira didn't even blink. She smirked down at Cedric. "Rather violent for a _royal_ sorcerer, aren't you?"

"You don't know the half of it. _Inter_ —"

The woman growled and floated down, yanking his wand away and snapping it in half, much to his dismay. "Some half-rate sorcerer isn't going to destroy _me_ that easily." She grinned wickedly, holding up another orb of energy in one hand while grasping his robe with the other. "Now then, Cedric dear…any final words?"

"Y-Yes…" He suddenly wielded _another_ wand, his Family Wand to be exact, from within his robe, much to her surprise. Thankfully, while he seldom used it, Cedric never went anywhere these days without it.

"Y-You… You!"

Cedric smirked, pointing the wand at her gleaming ruby pendant around her neck, whispering, " _Interficio_."

"No!"

A blinding light poured throughout the room, the vision of Lady Deyanira fading to nothing more than a mere glimmer of light before ultimately dousing for good.

Cedric panted as he gathered his wits about him. He then recalled something rather important. "Sofia." He hurried over to the girl and knelt next to her, lifting her gently to a sitting position. He noticed the minor gash on her forehead, a small trickle of crimson streaming from it. He used his wand to still the flow and partially heal the wound before magically placing a bandage over it. "Sofia?"

The girl stirred, her vision swimming and her head pounding. "M… Mr. Cedric?" She winced as she tried to open her eyes, though the surrounding brightness made it nearly impossible. "Wh-Where are we?"

"Oh, um… We're in my workshop, of course!" As if by magic, the scene faded away and the two literally appeared in his workshop. Cedric blinked, wondering what in the world was going on. He smiled sheepishly. "Yep. That's…exactly where we are." He placed a hand on her head, careful not to irritate her wound. "Are you all right?"

"I think so. What happened?" She finally found the strength to open her eyes, though she was having trouble with her balance. She was grateful he had stilled her and made her sit down on the floor.

"You, uh… What all do you remember?"

She yawned, shrugging. "I was having bad dreams about someone evil trying to take my amulet. And I think you were having bad dreams too? I don't know. I don't remember anything else." She rubbed her head and immediately regretted it, whimpering. "Ow…"

Wait a minute. She didn't remember… _any_ of that? "Oh, it must have just been a nightmare," he soothed, smiling. "We all have them from time to time. Nothing to be afraid of, right?"

Sofia finally settled her vision on him, though she wasn't entirely convinced of his reasoning. "I…guess so? But what happened to my head?"

"You fell and bumped it earlier." Well, it wasn't exactly a lie…

The princess blinked and then became concerned. "Mr. Cedric, what if someone really is after my amulet?"

He chuckled, nervously rubbing his arm. "Sofia, who would be silly enough to try?"

She gave him a dubious look. "Well, Miss Nettle for one…" She pouted when he rolled his eyes. "But I guess you're right… But if someone else did try—"

"I'd stop them. You have my word." He smiled when she seemed satisfied with his answer, if her hug was any indication. "Now then, I think you'd better get some rest. You took quite a fall earlier."

"I'll say… Thanks, Mr. Cedric." She gave him one more hug before making her way toward the door.

Cedric raised an eyebrow at the girl, who seemed to be swaying. "Why don't I walk with you so you don't end up like Humpty Dumpty?"

She giggled as he took hold of her arm. "Thanks… You're the best, Mr. Cedric."

"Coming from you, that means a lot, Sofia." He chuckled as they left the workshop together.

The end

A/N: Yay! It's finally done! :) By the way, I'm not entirely convinced that Sofia's completely lost her memories of Lady Deyanira… Just throwing that out there. :p If I do decide to do a follow-up on that, it will be a _long_ time down the road. Hehe. Hope you liked it. Thanks to all who stuck with this story line for so long! I truly appreciate it. ;) I have three stories in the works right now: "Never Forgotten," "Hot Potato," and "Heroic." :D Till next time! ~AquaTurquoise


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